Zoo Employees Reduce Carbon Footprint

By:Palm Beach Zoo

Source:Palm Beach Zoo

Date:March 28, 2014

Employees at the Palm Beach Zoo & Conservation Society are taking action to reduce the Zoo’s overall carbon footprint as part of a fuel reduction initiative, and have already saved greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to 0.71 metric tons of carbon dioxide. Since the launch on February 3, 2014, employees have saved 75 gallons of fuel, with the ultimate goal of reaching 100 gallons saved per month. Employees are encouraged to carpool, or find alternative ways to come in to work at the Zoo, such as safely walking or bicycling.

Andrew Aiken, President & CEO for the Zoo, said one of the best ways to exemplify the Zoo’s mission of inspiring people to act on behalf of wildlife is by employees taking action themselves and making environmentally-friendly choices as frequently as possible.

“We have to lead by example,” Aiken said. “If we can save 100 gallons of fuel per month, that’s approximately one ton of carbon that we didn’t emit into the atmosphere - which is good for wildlife.”

Saam Aiken, Conservation Research Associate for the Zoo, surveyed staff members to establish a baseline of fuel consumption, and created a private Facebook page for employees to post their actions for encouragement and accountability. “So far, almost half of the Zoo’s staff has collectively performed 210 environmental acts to save fuel,” he said. “We don’t need everybody to do a conservation act every single day, although that would be ideal. We simply encourage employees to take at least one fuel reduction action per month. It only takes a little effort from everyone to get a lot accomplished.”